Chapter 312 Naval Gun Cover

Charles didn't feel much about his results, after all, he only killed three enemies.

The enemy's two charges plus the 69th Infantry Regiment that was defeated earlier, the total casualties were initially estimated to be more than 3,000.

The three people killed by Charles were like a grain of sand thrown into a lake, without even a ripple.

However, this was extraordinary in Tijani's eyes.

Tijani was worried about Charles' safety, so he commanded the troops to fight while also paying attention to Charles' direction.

He saw the targets that Charles killed and was secretly surprised.

This is not to say that Charles's shooting skills are very accurate. The distance is more than 200 meters and the enemy is completely exposed in front of the trench. In addition, it is not difficult to hit the target.

The problem is that Charles chooses valuable targets for precise attack: officers, heavy machine gunners, and signalmen.

It is not easy to find them in the crowd, let alone kill them.

Tijani murmured to himself: "It seems that Charles' military talent is all-round, not just invention."

Finally, after Charles killed two more targets, the Ottoman army was once again blown back by the French grenade.

At this time, the bodies lying fifty meters in front of the trench had piled up like a small hill, and they even blocked the soldiers' sight. Tijani had to order the soldiers to fill sandbags and pile the trench one level higher.

…

It was noon, the drizzle finally stopped, a little sunshine came through the clouds, and a colorful rainbow hung in the sky at some point.

If it was any other time, Charles might sigh at its beauty, but no matter how you look at it now, it looks like the sky has been cut open and a colorful intestine has flowed out.

Charles sat pale on the ammunition box, with his rifle within reach, and his back against the side of the trench that was indistinguishable from blood or mud.

Charles tried to relax himself several times but failed. His muscles were always tense, and he could even feel them trembling slightly.

Adrian was helping the medic bandage the wounded on the other side. He noticed Charles' condition and hurriedly finished his work and ran over.

"Colonel!" He took out a piece of bread wrapped in moisture-proof paper from his backpack and handed it to him: "You may need to eat something!"

Charles glanced at the bread and shook his head with difficulty. He had no appetite at all, and even felt uncomfortable in his stomach when he saw the food.

"You must eat something." Adrian insisted: "Not wanting to eat is just an illusion. The body actually needs to replenish energy and water."

Charles was stunned for a moment and felt that what Adrian said made sense. He hadn't eaten since dawn, and he was still fighting at a high intensity. It would be strange if he wasn't hungry.

Thinking of this, Charles reluctantly took the bread from Adrian and opened it, forcing himself to take a few bites.

Adrian handed over the kettle again, and Charles took it and drank a few sips, and he seemed to feel better.

As the head of the regiment, Tijani was always busy. He ran back and forth between the front and rear trenches, ordering the soldiers to replenish firepower, strengthen trenches, and add barbed wire.

After arranging all this, he ran to Charles and sat down, panting and sighing: "Your mortar has made great contributions again, Colonel."

"What?" Charles asked, handing him the kettle.

Tijani took the kettle, tilted his neck and gulped a few mouthfuls, put down the kettle and took a few deep breaths and wiped his mouth, and replied: "It can effectively suppress the enemy's machine guns, and it is very safe. This is one of the reasons why our army has only suffered more than 500 casualties until now."

Charles said "hmm".

Before mortars, the best way to suppress machine guns was machine guns.

But at this time, the French machine guns had to sweep the enemies charging head-on, and they could not take into account the enemy machine guns secretly set up against them.

The mortar solved this problem very well. Once the enemy had machine guns deep inside, the mortar would immediately fire a few shells at the location where the gunfire sounded.

Tijani looked carefully at both sides and said to Charles in a low voice: "But I'm not sure if we can hold out until dark."

Charles nodded slightly to show that he understood.

He was also thinking about this problem just now. The whole army had more than 3,000 people, and more than 500 people were killed and wounded in the enemy's two charges.

This number seems very optimistic. At this rate, only more than 500 casualties are needed to hold out until dark.

But the battlefield is not a simple numerical inference.

3,000 people suffered 500 casualties to defend for a morning, which does not mean that 2,500 people can also suffer 500 casualties to defend for the same length of time.

When a certain critical point is reached, the firepower of the 105th Infantry Regiment is no longer enough to resist the enemy's charge, and the defense line will suddenly collapse and everyone will become corpses or prisoners.

But no one knows what this critical point is, 2,000 people, 2,300 people? Or maybe it will be the next second!

"They can't send reinforcements, right?" Charles asked.

"Yes!" Tijani nodded helplessly: "The Ottomans blocked the landing beach with artillery. The transport ships can't get close either, and the enemy's coastal defense artillery has replenished its shells and is ready."

Battleships may be able to withstand the bombardment of coastal defense artillery, but transport ships carrying troops are different. With just a few rounds, they may cause fires or even detonate ammunition.

Just when the two were frowning, a signalman hurried up to report: "General, Colonel, General Winter called, they plan to send a fleet to forcefully enter the Gulf of Saros to provide artillery cover for our army, including the 'Queen Elizabeth', General Winter needs to know how to cooperate with us!"

Charles and Tijani's eyes lit up. It would be much easier if the fleet could provide artillery fire for the defense line.

Tijani immediately took out a map from his pocket and spread it out. After looking at it for a while, he drew a circle in the area east of the defense line with his finger: "This is the main force of the enemy's attack. I think the artillery fire should bomb this area..."

"No!" Charles interrupted Tijani. He pointed to the west of the defense line and said, "I think our artillery fire should bomb this area."

"West?" Tijani raised his head in confusion: "The enemy only has one infantry regiment and one militia regiment there. They are even out of ammunition in our encirclement..."

"That's why we have to bomb the west." Charles explained: "The morale of the militia is low. If they are bombed by artillery, they are likely to have problems."

Tijani suddenly realized with an "Oh". After careful consideration, Tijani felt that bombing the west was more reasonable.

This is not only because the enemy in the west is more likely to collapse, but more importantly, if we attack the western "A" angle, the battleships can stay away from the coast, and the enemy has few coastal defense guns that can hit the battleships.

Thinking of this, Tijani no longer hesitated and nodded, "You are right, attack the west!"